Mexico Beats Scotland in 2018 Friendly Behind Giovani dos Santos Goal

Mexico defeated Scotland 1-0 on Saturday at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in one of its final international friendlies ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Giovani dos Santos scored the only goal of the match in the 13th minute. Mexico finished with 32 total shots, compared to four for Scotland. However, just 10 of those shots were on target for El Tri, summing up a frustrating night.

Mexico Needs to Be More Clinical for World Cup Success

Entering Saturday, Mexico had four goals in four friendlies in 2018, with three of those goals coming against what was a slightly weakened Iceland squad. Because of that, another lackluster victory is exactly what the home fans didn't want to see in El Tri's World Cup send-off match.

Miguel Layun had a shot carom off the post in the first half, and Hirving Lozano hit the crossbar in the second half. In that sense, the difference between an underwhelming 1-0 win and a commanding 3-0 blowout was a matter of inches.

Still, Scotland didn't qualify for the 2018 World Cup and relied on a lot of younger players as coach Alex McLeish starts looking toward UEFA Euro 2020. Mexico should've had the game comfortably out of reach well into the second half.

A brief sequence in the second half was a microcosm of Mexico's night.

Lozano broke free down the left flank in the 52nd minute and found an open Carlos Vela with a cross into the 18-yard box. Rather than trying a first-time volley, Vela hesitated and brought the ball down, which allowed some time for Scotland's defense to get into position. Vela passed to Layun, whose close-range effort was straight down the center of goal and blocked by a Scotland player before Scotland cleared the danger.

That kind of dreadful finishing could cost Mexico dearly at the World Cup.

Dos Santos Validates World Cup Roster Spot

ESPN FC's Tom Marshall reported Saturday that Mexico coach Juan Carlos Osorio removed Jurgen Damm, Jesus Molina and Oswaldo Alanis from his provisional World Cup squad, with dos Santos making the cut. Some wondered if dos Santos would be on the bubble since a hamstring injury has limited him to six MLS appearances for the Los Angeles Galaxy.

The 29-year-old midfielder answered his skeptics somewhat with his opener in the 13th minute.

Throughout his career, dos Santos has often raised his game to a higher level with the national team compared to his club performances. Saturday was another example of that, as he looked very good despite his lack of first-team action so far this season.

Especially with Mexico's goalscoring struggles, dos Santos' creativity and ability to create something from nothing could be huge for El Tri at the World Cup.

Pressure Mounting on Osorio Entering World Cup

The Azteca crowd wasn't shy about voicing its frustration with Mexico's effort, not only booing the team but also calling for Osorio's firing.

There's obviously no chance Mexico would relieve Osorio of his duties with the team's first World Cup match a little over two weeks away (June 17) against Germany. But the negative reaction toward the coach and the players at the final whistle is emblematic of the level of expectation among some of the El Tri supporters.

Mexico is headed to the World Cup for the seventh straight time, so simply making the tournament isn't enough to qualify as a success. Along with that, a seventh consecutive exit in the round of 16 probably won't cut it, either.

Osorio is well aware of how much scrutiny he'll face based on Mexico's result at the World Cup, and Saturday's friendly was another reminder.

What's Next?

Mexico has one more friendly remaining before the World Cup gets underway. Denmark will host El Tri in an exhibition June 9. Scotland, meanwhile, won't see action until September, when it meets Belgium in a friendly.